Custom-made

Yesterday I was fitted for two dresses and one pair of high-rise shorts. The tailor shop had great samples on the shelves and they assured me the quality would be perfect. I had heard great things about Hoi An tailors, so my expectations were high.

I should have known better.

One of my dresses fits beautifully, but the fabric makes it look a bit like a bridesmaid dress. It's a full length strapless maxi dress -- I wanted it to be fun, summery and appropriate for a beach. My first fitting was horrible, it wouldn't stay up and the seamstresses were trying to assure me that the dress was beautiful and the fit was spot-on. I prevailed and they sent it back to get refinished. 

I attempted to get a classy cocktail dress and ended up with a shiny, white cheap looking prom dress. The design in the magazine was beautiful, but it didn't translate well into real life. It didn't even pretend to fit me yesterday when I tried it on. It was way too small and the deep V in the front was off center. If the dress were on Project Runway, Michael Kors and Nina Garcia would tear it apart and the designer would definitely be "out." 

They had to start again from scratch. The second fitting today wasn't much better, and I'm waiting on the tailor to come to my hotel with it for the final shot. If I don't like it, I don't have to pay. After it was reconstructed, it looks a bit like a babydoll maternity dress gone horribly wrong. I instantly gain 20 lbs when I put it on. It's awful.

My shorts are the worst. They fit nicely, but the fabric looks like Beach Boy swimming trunks from 1960. First off the shorts are silk (they should be cotton) so they're nice and shiny. The print I chose is a bold floral print that's ivory with dark blue outlines of leaves and flowers. I didn't realize that the ivory was dipped in a bright sky blue on the bottom and exactly 50% of my shorts are sky blue. My lower half is symmetrically divided into perfect chunks. And trust me, you do not want your ass cut into blocky slices.

"They're not as horrible as I thought... I mean, you look a bit like you're going into a boxing match," Jenn said.

I couldn't help but laugh.

I asked the tailor what she thought. "Yes, I think they're nice. Cute. Stylish, even." She was trying hard to be polite because everyone in the room knew the shorts were bad. Very, very bad. I guess I can try rock them in the Philippines where no one will know me? 

At any rate, I just picked up a pair of custom made sandals. They're beautiful. Jenn got two pairs of shoes and some boots -- all of them are constructed well and fit like Cinderella's glass slippers. Had I known how amazing the shoes were, I would have forgone every single piece of clothing I had made and invest the cash into shoes. Custom-made boots and flats and oxfords -- hello, heaven. 

I'm thrilled with the one pair I got... I guess it's just incentive to come back to Vietnam.

Currently the power is out all throughout town so all of the building are abuzz with generators. I feel a bit silly for being able to use this computer right now, but our hotel seems happy to accomodate. We have two more hours until we hop on our final overnight bus of the trip. We're once again heading south to warmer weather and we're seeking out a dive school so I can learn how to scuba dive. 

Here's to hoping I sleep well on the bus tonight. We arrive at 6 a.m. and I dive at 7:30 a.m. tomorrow... onward to yet another road-weary adventure!